Yes, we do travel.

Pensacola, July 2007

I recently spent a lovely evening with a group of girlfriends, and during the course of the evening the topic of summer travel plans surfaced. My family spends a good part of the summer in the States each year; it's just what we do for a multitude of important reasons that I may explain some other time. Someone innocently commented (not exactly verbatim): "If you spend so much time in the States, then how can you possibly travel throughout Europe? That's part of the deal for us. Give it all up to accept a position in Europe and then travel, travel, travel." We, on the other hand, live with the perspective that this is our permanent home for the next 20 or so years; we haven't given anything up to be here, but we do cherish connections in the States and have a need to nourish them.

Malta, April 2008

I just shrugged it off at the time, but it has come back to me several times this week. I haven't wavered on the choice to be in the States in the summer, but I have given the travel question much thought. Even with 5 to 7 weeks in the States in a normal summer, we still have traveled quite a bit in the last several years. (Mr. Duncan's travels go back 20 years and are not fully included here.) I made this list for me but am sharing it with you, maybe as validation: Yes, we do travel.

Folgaria, Jan. 2008
(Yes, driving through winding roads to purposefully reach snow counts as travel to me!)

And in the time frame of this travel list (roughly 8 years) . . . I moved to a foreign country, had a baby, got married, moved across that country, changed positions, continued to work full time, learned a foreign language (sort of), and bought a house in a foreign land. It's been busy.

These are places that I have visited, places that I've strolled through, enjoyed a meal in, met the locals of, savored the wine (or beer) of, spent the night in, taken in the art of, admired the architecture of . . . not just places I've passed through on my way elsewhere. Those cities in bold? I've been to those on multiple visits. (It's likely that I haven't included all of the places I've visited.) We don't have a "list" like many folks we know, rather we make travel decisions based on opportunities, friends, feelings, etc. Oh, and, we don't do organized tours as they are too restrictive. So, who do you think is the travel planner in our house?

Orvieto, Mid Nov. 2007

Places We've Explored:

Malta

From one end of the little island to the other

Italy (Most travel has been here; there's a reason for that -- we kinda like this newly-adopted country.)

Ischia, Capri, Procida, Positano, Vietri, Sorrento, Ravello, Amalfi, Herculaneum, Pompei, Vesuvius, Cusano Mutri, Benevento, Solopaca, Avellino, Gaeta, Sperlonga, Naples, Pozzuoli, Rome, Orvieto, Spoleto, Todi, Deruta, Montefalco, Grutti, Assisi, Perugia, Umbertide, Gubbio, Cortona, Mercatale, Lisciano Niccone, Montalcino, Pienza, Arezzo, Montepulciano, San Gimignano, Firenze, Lucca, Montecatini Terme, Pisa, Terrinia, Bologna, Parma, Torino, Verona (and lots of the little towns in the province), Padova (and lots of the little towns in the province), Riva del Garda, Arco, Bolzano, Vicenza (and lots of the little towns in the province), Asolo, Cortina d'Ampezzo, Venice, Trieste (Oh, and the Winter Olympics in Torino)

Paris, Nov. 2006
First time traveling with teens, interesting. . . in a good way.

Croatia

Rovinj, Porec

Slovenia

Ljubljana, Postjana, Bled

France

Paris, Nice, Antibes, Cannes, Grasse, Vence, St. Paul de Vence

UK

London

Germany

Garmisch, Munich, Dachau, Frankfurt, Weisbaden, Mainz, Heidelberg, Wurzburg

Czech Republic

Prague

Assisi, June 2008

Poland

And in the US --

DC, Boston, New Orleans (and other parts in South LA), Destin, Pensacola

Travel Planned by Year's End

Sardegna (woo hoo!), New Orleans, Panama City Beach, Orlando, Charleston, Virginia Beach, DC, Boston, Sorrento, Stuttgart (and a little bit of France), and possibly Provence

The only travel dream that we are sure that we both want to fulfill: RV across America with an (Italian) family. The irony is too much, I know. Mr. Duncan will be impossible -- I am sure of it :)

Cortona, Late Nov. 2007
A Traveling Family

These photos? . . . . They are from those readily available on my computer without reaching into archives -- yeah, just me being lazy.